20 lines
2.2 KiB
HTML
20 lines
2.2 KiB
HTML
<p>Your phone plan is infrastructure. In most cities it is the most critical single dependency your work setup has. A poor plan turns minor inconveniences into production outages.</p>
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<h2>The two-SIM strategy</h2>
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<p>Carry two active SIMs at all times: a local physical SIM and an eSIM or international SIM as backup. If the local SIM fails or runs out of data, the backup provides a bridge until you can recharge. Single-SIM reliance on a local carrier you have used for two days is fragile.</p>
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<h2>Testing a new SIM before relying on it</h2>
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<p>Buy a SIM at the airport or from a carrier shop, then run a speed test and a video call before settling into accommodation. Some airport SIMs have throttled data or coverage limited to urban centers. Discovering this before you depend on the SIM costs almost nothing; discovering it during a client call costs a lot.</p>
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<h2>eSIM options</h2>
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<p>eSIM providers like Airalo, Holafly, and Nomad offer regional and global data plans without a physical SIM swap. Speeds and coverage vary by region and underlying carrier. Check which local carrier the eSIM rides on—the same physical infrastructure as the cheapest local prepaid SIM often performs identically at three times the price.</p>
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<h2>Data amounts that actually matter</h2>
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<p>Calculate your actual data needs from usage history. A typical nomad using a VPN, cloud storage, and occasional video calls uses between 15GB and 40GB per month. Many plans marketed for travelers provide 3GB to 10GB, which runs out in the first week of real work use. Do not buy a plan based on price per GB alone; check the total cap.</p>
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<h2>Hotspot limits</h2>
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<p>Some plans sell data at full speed then throttle hotspot tethering to 3G or below. If you work primarily from a laptop using your phone as a hotspot, verify that the plan allows full-speed tethering before purchasing. Read the fine print—this restriction is common and rarely advertised prominently.</p>
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<h2>Your home number</h2>
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<p>Retain a home-country SIM or virtual number for two-factor authentication, bank SMS codes, and calls from clients who expect a local number. Losing access to your home number mid-trip can lock you out of accounts with no fast recovery path.</p>
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